The investigators at the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Cleveland Clinic, Ohio found out that a periarticular injection of liposomal bupivacaine with an adductor canal block (LB+ACB) exhibited a comparative efficacy as the femoral nerve block (FNB) for controlling postoperative pain following total knee arthroplasty.  

Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) presents significant postoperative pain, which needs to be appropriately managed. This study focused on evaluating the proper regimen to manage this postoperative pain.

The retrospective analysis of the 557 consecutive primary TKA cases was conducted at a single hospital from 2010 to 2014. Out of 557 cases, only 390 remained after matching the enrollment criteria. A comparison was done between inpatient and post-discharge variables linked to pain, cost, narcotic use, and healthcare resource utilization.

No significant differences were observed in the demographics between the two groups. The patients of the FNB group utilized fewer narcotics overall than LB+ACB group. Both approaches provide relief from pain during the analysis, but for some of the subjects, LB+ACB is not the first option.